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Canada’s leading organization devoted to death with dignity is about to lose its charitable status after the federal revenue agency ruled that it never should have been registered as a charity.
Founded it 1982, Death with Dignity Canada bills itself as a “health and education charity focused on promoting choice and dignity at end of life.”
In a letter delivered last week, however, the Canada Revenue Agency said the organization was “registered in error” and will have its charitable tax status annulled.
Death With Dignity Canada is expected to have its charitable status stripped on Feb. 15, after which it will continue as a non-profit organization. Donations to non-profit groups are not tax-deductible.
Following a lengthy audit of the charity and its activities, the revenue agency concluded that it does not conduct “any activities advancing education in the charitable sense.”
Wanda Morris, chief executive officer of Dying with Dignity Canada, said the organization offers sick Canadians information about advance care planning and patients’ rights while also providing individual support for people at the end of their lives. The charity is best known for making the moral and legal case for physician-assisted death.
“We’ve been a registered charity for 30 years and we’ve previously had an audit — so this was not anticipated,” said Morris, who refused to speculate about whether the government audit and its conclusion were politically motivated.
The organization’s board is now exploring ways to raise money as a non-profit. “We’re confident that we can continue,” she said.
In its letter, the revenue agency said the federal government made a mistake by granting Dying with Dignity Canada charitable status and then renewing it in 2011. As a result, the agency said it would “annul” rather than revoke the organization’s charitable status, allowing it to retain all of its current assets.
Dying with Dignity Canada has four full-time staff members and relies heavily on a national network of volunteers to conduct its work.
The charity brought in $403,000 in 2013, and according to preliminary figures, its revenues doubled last year to more than $800,000.
Morris said the increase in revenues coincided with intense activity around the issue of physician-assisted dying. Quebec last year passed right-to-die legislation and the Senate is now considering a bill brought forward by Conservative MP Steven Fletcher. The Supreme Court of Canada is also expected to soon rule on the question of whether the federal prohibition on assisted dying should be lifted for the terminally ill.
“This is an issue whose time has come,” said Morris.
When it becomes a non-profit next month, Dying with Dignity Canada will no longer be subject to federal rules that restrict the political activity of a charity. The federal government says charities can only conduct “incidental” political activity, which it defines as 10 per cent of a charity’s overall work.
Some partisan political activity is banned, such as highlighting the voting record of an MP or a political party. A non-profit is free to provide such information.
“The timing is very interesting,” Morris said. “Being able to be an unfettered political advocate at this point is certainly an upside for us.”
Morris said she believes Canadians will win the right to a physician-assisted death this year.
“It’s never possible to predict what the Supreme Court will do, but we are cautiously optimistic that they’ll rule in our favour and that soon no Canadians will have to suffer at end of life.”
aduffy@ottawacitizen.com
查看原文...
Founded it 1982, Death with Dignity Canada bills itself as a “health and education charity focused on promoting choice and dignity at end of life.”
In a letter delivered last week, however, the Canada Revenue Agency said the organization was “registered in error” and will have its charitable tax status annulled.
Death With Dignity Canada is expected to have its charitable status stripped on Feb. 15, after which it will continue as a non-profit organization. Donations to non-profit groups are not tax-deductible.
Following a lengthy audit of the charity and its activities, the revenue agency concluded that it does not conduct “any activities advancing education in the charitable sense.”
Wanda Morris, chief executive officer of Dying with Dignity Canada, said the organization offers sick Canadians information about advance care planning and patients’ rights while also providing individual support for people at the end of their lives. The charity is best known for making the moral and legal case for physician-assisted death.
“We’ve been a registered charity for 30 years and we’ve previously had an audit — so this was not anticipated,” said Morris, who refused to speculate about whether the government audit and its conclusion were politically motivated.
The organization’s board is now exploring ways to raise money as a non-profit. “We’re confident that we can continue,” she said.
In its letter, the revenue agency said the federal government made a mistake by granting Dying with Dignity Canada charitable status and then renewing it in 2011. As a result, the agency said it would “annul” rather than revoke the organization’s charitable status, allowing it to retain all of its current assets.
Dying with Dignity Canada has four full-time staff members and relies heavily on a national network of volunteers to conduct its work.
The charity brought in $403,000 in 2013, and according to preliminary figures, its revenues doubled last year to more than $800,000.
Morris said the increase in revenues coincided with intense activity around the issue of physician-assisted dying. Quebec last year passed right-to-die legislation and the Senate is now considering a bill brought forward by Conservative MP Steven Fletcher. The Supreme Court of Canada is also expected to soon rule on the question of whether the federal prohibition on assisted dying should be lifted for the terminally ill.
“This is an issue whose time has come,” said Morris.
When it becomes a non-profit next month, Dying with Dignity Canada will no longer be subject to federal rules that restrict the political activity of a charity. The federal government says charities can only conduct “incidental” political activity, which it defines as 10 per cent of a charity’s overall work.
Some partisan political activity is banned, such as highlighting the voting record of an MP or a political party. A non-profit is free to provide such information.
“The timing is very interesting,” Morris said. “Being able to be an unfettered political advocate at this point is certainly an upside for us.”
Morris said she believes Canadians will win the right to a physician-assisted death this year.
“It’s never possible to predict what the Supreme Court will do, but we are cautiously optimistic that they’ll rule in our favour and that soon no Canadians will have to suffer at end of life.”
aduffy@ottawacitizen.com
查看原文...
